Myanmar Peace Plan Stalls as Asean Sees No Major Progress

(Bloomberg) -- There’s been no significant progress on the Association of Southeast Asian Nations’ five-point peace proposal for Myanmar that would include ending violence and committing to free elections, according to Indonesia President Joko Widodo.

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“Asean unity is needed to formulate the way forward,” Indonesia’s leader said Thursday as the two-day summit wraps up in the island of Labuan Bajo. “But the issue of Myanmar must not hinder the accelerated development of the Asean community, cause this is what we have been waiting for.”

Myanmar, one of the group’s 10 members, is a lingering problem for Asean as violence remains rampant in a country run by a military junta, with no signs that the peace proposal pushed by its neighbors will be adopted any time soon. The junta continues to use force to crack down on its citizens and political parties critical of its authoritarian rule.

In April, more than 50 people were killed following a Myanmar military strike in the Sagaing region. The US condemned the violence and urged Myanmar to “to respect the genuine and inclusive democratic aspirations of the people of Burma.”

While Asean has taken an increasingly tougher stance on Myanmar by banning its military generals from attending regional meetings and actively promoting the peace plan, critics find these steps insufficient and are calling for stronger measures including sanctions. The regional bloc has a policy of non-interference in its members affairs and the group remains divided in resolving Myanmar’s crisis.

Unknown assailants shot at a convoy of Indonesian and Singaporean diplomats days before the May 10 start of the Asean summit, casting a pall on the gathering.

Indonesia is engaging Myanmar through quiet diplomacy, its foreign minister has said repeatedly. The country has also set up a special envoy office, though officials have kept mum on its progress.

Jokowi said Indonesia is willing to engage anyone including Myanmar’s junta. “But engagement does not mean recognition,” he said at a media briefing after wrapping up the summit.

(Adds more comments from President Joko Widodo in last two paragraphs.)

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